Most ‘zen’ practitioners will tell you that reaching a state of higher consciousness is not an art but a way of life, where “awareness” is “consciousness”. The emphasis on the present moment is perhaps Zen’s most distinctive characteristic. In modern times, finding the time and ability to disconnect from technology, busy schedules and sensory overload…
Aside from giving us the Mad Max films and dang-good biscuits, Australia has also given us a number of world-changing inventions including the black box, the ultrasound scanner and WiFi technology – which has personally allowed me to while away hours in my favorite coffee shop. Now, Sydney-born Duncan Helmers wants to revolutionize the way…
It use to be that when you wanted to get rid of a well-made oak dining chair, you would cut it down for kindling, toss it to the curb or set it on your front porch as a friendly gesture to that raccoon who was maimed by your dog last winter. Rick Koren does none…
It goes without saying – science should be (and most often is) fun and entertaining. When we’re curious our minds are the most open to new ideas and sometimes people forget that ‘playing’ is the most natural form of discovery and exploration – especially where innovation for product design is concerned. Nanotechnology is the study…
“Head out on the highway, looking for adventure and whatever comes our way” – Steppenwolf, Born to be Wild. Move over pocket-ripping and bulky multi-tools! Portland, Oregon-based Leatherman Tools has recently launched an industry first; their vision of a fully-functional multi-tool that can be worn around the wrist in the form of the Leatherman Tread.…
“It’s not pink, it’s magenta” says Geoff Casey, Design Manager at Santa Cruz Bicycles. Santa Cruz Bicycles produces some of the best carbon fiber mountain bikes in the world. In the past few years they have been leading the industry forward into new colors and clean graphics thanks in no small part to the talents…
“It’s Time For Industrial Design To Grow Up” is the clickbait title of a Fast Co. article trying to define what it is industrial designers are really doing in their jobs. We all have to be placed in a box it seems and with technology rapidly advancing, perhaps our titles do as well. Every now and…
Although we’ve been seeing an increase in wooden bicycle concepts over the past few years, few have ever made it outside of the concept stage – and for many bicycle enthusiasts, this is for good reason. Despite the unarguable beauty of a handcrafted wooden bicycle frame, most designs have come across as purely that: aesthetics…
A bee hive design just raised $2.2 Million in 24 hours. With 40 days to go, there is likely a few million to be added. The list of reasons why it has raised so much is lengthy, but the top reason is simple–people love them some fresh, hot bee-squeezed honey. The Flow Hive makes it…
Yes, we have a fancy new website and a kick-butt new end-to-end MODO modeling course with over seven hours of ooey-gooey hard-surface SubD goodness. But that’s not all folks, no way no how. From now on, friends, cadjunkie has no memberships and no recurring payments. Download and enjoy anywhere, on any device, forever. What were…
Among other recent technological breakthroughs, it is now possible for dreams to be translated much more efficiently into physical 3D creations. Among others, ‘The Wire Collection’ of vases designed by Ivan Zhurba is a testimony to that fact. Produced using selective laser sintering (SLS) 3D printing technology, ‘The Wire Collection’ vases thrive with the spontaneous…
Comedian Lewis Black once said that the problem with Treadmills was that ‘it seems to me when you’re running and you’re done, you should be somewhere else.’ Well now we have a solution…and it comes in the form of the Treadmill bike. From a distance, onlookers appear to see someone slowly moonwalking forward, traveling rapidly at high…
Enabled by new developments in 3D Printing and Computer Vision, footwear design company SOLS has been trying to tackle the area of orthopedics to make it easier for everyone to get around. Over the weekend, the company released it’s new ADAPTIV footwear – a conceptual project that allows the footwear designs to rapidly adapt shape…
Nendo, one of the best Japanese design studios of late, have taken to chocolate yet again and created a few bonbons that truly go outside the norm. After having their way with reinventing rubber-bands, cakes and chopsticks, they applied their inimitable style by coercing the chocolate into unusual geometric forms. I feel like it would be a crime…
If you know a cyclist, you’ve likely heard complaints about that persnickety front bicycle derailleur. Well, to take those derailleur woes away, a father and his three sons have come up with a simple device which could redefine cycling as we know it – a 3-speed front gearbox.
If you thought combining Keyboards and guitars was a neat way to spend your Saturdays, then you best prepare yourself. The KeyMouse is the brainchild of two brothers from Utah who have brought together a mouse and keyboard into a complete and final product. The concept was crafted to solve a common problem seen amongst…
American Wrench and William “Iron Bill” Shatner have teamed up to create the Rivet, a type of vehicle they have called a ‘Landjet’. “Designed from the ground up as a 3 wheeled vehicle, with its exposed cockpit and command center, seating fit only for a captain and the harmonious roar of its brute V8, piloting Rivet…
Since graduating with an architecture degree a few years ago, French product designer Pierre Guibert naturally drifted into product design after working with prototyping materials extensively and being inspired to pursue smaller-scale projects during his time in university. Working primarily with cardboard – including developing a line of handmade cardboard lampshades that he also teaches…
For anybody who can remember using an original Macintosh computer in the 1980s and early 1990s, few could argue that today’s Apple lineup of computers bares any resemblance to the early computers that helped make Apple a household name. For a group of designers at the German tech blog CURVED, this was just as convincing…
When it comes to transportation design, it used to be that one only needed to attend an exterior design sketching class to notice that the majority of those in attendance were likely car-obsessed males. However, as more women crossover into design and engineering roles that were previously held by their male counterparts, we’re also starting…
Fresh off the heels of last week’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES 2015) in Las Vegas, the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit is in full-swing today and is swapping in-dash computer announcements for supercar unveilings. The first car to take the Detroit audience by storm this morning was one that has been rumored…
If you still haven’t managed to remove the ‘Everything is Awesome’ LEGO Movie song from your head, this next bit of awesome news probably isn’t going to help much…unless of course, keeping the song stuck in your head is awesome (it’s awesome). Inspired by his three awesome sons and their desire to create more complex…
When taking a glance at his past projects including the Who’s There Chair, Cargo Containers and Power Lines, it becomes clear that industrial designer Daniel Ballou not only finds joy in solving everyday design problems, but he likes to provide a somewhat humorous experience for the end user as well. His most recent project, Cinder…
So much news and so little time! As the world of product design and engineering continues to shift shape thanks to recent developments in digital fabrication, cheaper and more powerful CAD platforms, an ever-increasing interest from a younger generation, and all-around interest in the field, SolidSmack exists to help drive the future of product design…
With a focus on the design of systems and the creation of tools and processes for producing products, Swedish-Chilean designer Anton Alvarez has had his work exhibited internationally at establishments including the Design Museum and the Victoria & Albert Museum in London. Similar to other designers who have created their own methods of manufacturing, the…
Inspired by the aesthetic of vacuum-formed everyday products, Felix Tai and Jeffrey Leung’s POMCH is one of the more interesting applications of vacuum forming we’ve seen…and is one that a generation of ‘makers’ will almost certainly respond to positively. Having started as an experiment in school, the concept has since launched itself into its own…
As convenient as it is for rapid prototyping purposes, 3D printing as a method of final manufacturing can be a bit of eyesore, depending on your tastes. However, when done right and put into context, the use of additive manufacturing to create everyday items can also create some attractive objects that are worthy of a…
We can’t fault Seth Manlove for being unsatisfied with the kind of lamps we find in the marketplace these days. While innovation in some like Slow Wood’s Teca Lamp is impressive, the choices in the kitsch category are very limited. The SLIM Lamp is here to fill this void and can be found on Kickstarter…
If you’ve always wanted to take a piece of a 747 home with you but don’t have space in the backyard, Boeing has been listening to your concerns. Starting this holiday season, the aerospace manufacturer is selling a collection of discarded airplane parts—some upcycled into other products, some not—through their new online Custom Hangar store.…
When it comes to software and digital asset bundles, the results tend to vary. While some might include a couple of golden nuggets worth 2x the price alone, oftentimes users are left with a few gigabytes of tacky stock photos and Wordpress themes that will never…and I mean never, be used. The Pay it Forward…
Back in 1965, neo-futuristic designer, architect, philosopher and all-around badass Buckminster Fuller designed and patented an “autonomous dwelling machine” that he coined the Fly’s Eye Dome. The designer, whose fascination with material usage and energy efficiency in design and architecture led to a career highlighted with a variety of geodesic dome designs, sadly passed away…
Store this under ‘early Christmas gift’ or ‘app to escape the post-Thursday turkey exhaustion.’ Mischief is now the sketch app from the Foundry, after a mid-November acquisition of Made with Mischief. They have Mac and Windows versions–cheap at a cost of only $25. With the news they announce a free version of Mischief. Most interesting… “Chris Cheung, who…
Including the Ostrich Pillow and Convertible Napping Desk from Studio NL, workers today have never had it so good when it comes to escaping their pesky coworkers for a few minutes or to gently whisk themselves away to a brief happy place before attempting another complicated CAD maneuver. Now another kid on the block wants…
While there (should) still be enough room in everybody’s toolkit or backpack for reliable analog tools, the fact of the matter is that no matter where you start, those analog sketches are likely going to end up in your computer in some way or another. While it has taken forever for the iPad–and other digital…
After a successful Kickstarter campaign in February of 2014 that saw them raise over $250,000 (with an original goal of $18,000) The Floyd Leg creators have been busy expanding their product line that was born out of the successful Kickstarter campaign. This time around, they want to enable you to create an entire workshop or…
Having designed everything from jetpacks to furniture and clothing to restaurant interiors prior to joining Apple’s industrial design team, industrial designer Marc Newson had one more product to get off his chest before signing up for the Cupertino all-star team: a modern 21st century shotgun for Beretta. Revealed at an event in London last night…
Next time you’re at a big-box store such as Target, take a moment to walk down their toothbrush and toothpaste aisle. Pretend that you’re being hired to do some qualitative research into redefining the oral care experience. Now back out. The oral care industry is a confusing one–one where they are trying to meet the…
Aiming to be a creative lab focusing on nurturing young talent, Milan-based Incipit (“the beginning” in Latin) manufacturers and distributes a collection of home accessory products through collaborating with up-and-coming designers. Founded in 2013 by Roberto Hoz and Marta Bernstein, the company helps support young designers by sharing skills and best business practices through a…
It’s hard not to appreciate concrete from a manufacturing standpoint regardless of your taste for or against the cool minimalist aesthetic. Between its widespread availability and ability to be formed into literally any cavity, concrete is an excellent medium for the cheap up-front cost of manufacturing with it alone. Among other designers who have been…
Known partly for their famous connection to Steve McQueen (thanks in no small part to a legendary Sports Illustrated cover), Swedish motorcycle company Husqvarna has been called “the two-wheeled version of what Mini is to BMW’s car division” since being bought by the automotive giant in July of 2007. Similar to the Mini, Husqvarna Motorcycles…
Ahhhh. I tell you what, a hand-carved object is a breath of fresh wood shavings. In an age where we’re shocked at eating veggies straight from the garden and most can’t use a jackknife to shave a spear or hunt a squirrel, a guy with a lathe and a piece of native hardwood seems almost…
With low-volume manufacturing methods becoming cheaper and more readily available, the amount of designers cranking out bicycles and bicycle accessories to the tune of their own liking has increased exponentially within the past few years. Among others who have jumped into the bicycle manufacturing game is ex-Nike Innovation Director Rich Fox and his new Circa…
It’s no secret that the ‘urban bicycle’ is a hot topic in bicycle design circles. With the rising popularity of the recent Oregon Manifest–an annual nationwide competition that pairs design firms with small bicycle fabricators to create the ‘ultimate’ urban bicycle–along with a host of bike-related infrastructure developments, urban cycling is on the forefront of…
Necessity is the mother of invention some might say and the need to make optimum utilization of the limited space available in the refrigerator has given birth to many a great invention, such as this amazing new bottleLoft by product designer Brian Conti. Billed as the ‘world’s first magnetic bottle hanger’, the slim organization system…
Toilet humor is considered rude and cheap, but this time around we have a very innovative contraption that fits the bill in a good way. It’s not new news that we as humans have to use the restroom daily. It’s also not new news that we flush down gallons of water because, well…because that’s how…
When your desktop, coffee table or countertop is covered in nothing but papers and pizza stains, there are two things you need–A low-maintenance, oxygen-producing plant and a ceramic animal sculpt. It is then people will say things such as, “My what eclectic taste they have. I want to be their friend.” Plants are easy to…
It’s easier said than done when it comes to taking care of pets. Right from the tiny fishes in a tank to the poop-master doggies with droopy eyes and fluffy ears – all spell work. Yes, we succumb to their charms and are left with tons of cleaning and caring to do. This is till…
It is hard to disagree that when Swiss quality meets German precision, great things happen. Take the case when Thorsten Franck put the Delta Tower printer to good use in a project called 7DAYS7STOOLS. One of the objectives of this project was to find a new way of production for real objects in human scale.…
For decades, the ability to view sea life without a snorkel or expensive scuba gear has been limited to glass-bottom boat tours, aquariums and if you were lucky enough, a submarine tour. Boat manufacturer Clear Blue Hawaii is aiming to change that and make the viewing experience for personal water vessels a full 360-degree experience…
Considered by many as being one of the most innovative companies, Nike doesn’t just earn that title by chance. Sure, Adidas and New Balance are innovative in their own ways…as are many other companies not related to sports at all. But when it comes to market performance and social influence in 2014, it’s hard to…